Expert on a country : Chile

Chile: where the land runs out

Where in the world is Chile?    (Location)

Chile is located in South America and runs along the Pacific Ocean.It shares borders with Argentina, Peru, Bolivia,and the Pacific Ocean.Chile's capitol is Santiago. It is located in the Western Hemisphere and it is the longest and thinnest country in the world.Chile's northern region is hot and dry and has the Atacama desert ,the driest desert in the world. Chile's Central Valley is the heart of the land where agriculture and industry is very important. The southern area of Chile is broken up into  islands. The southern region area of Chile is known as the Lakes Region and has many beautiful landscapes.

Crazy geography   (Place)

One writer described Chile's geography as loco (crazy) and the Chileans take glee in using the phrase.Chile's geography is complicated though.Chile has  about a 100 volcanoes, 50 of which are active. It has some of the highest mountains in the world (the Andes mountains), geysers, and glaciers . At sea level it may be a scalding heat while in the mountains,an hour away,it may be snowing so hard that you can only see white.Towards southern Chile the land is known as the Archipelago because it is broken into many islands. The Huemul and the Condor are Chile's national animals.The Santiago zoo is the only place in central Chile where one can see wildlife.The Alerce tree is a large Conifer ,much like the American redwood, and it is now illegal to cut them down in Chile.Chile's national flower is the Copihue , a bell shaped flower with thick petals.

Chile's coat of arms shows the Huemul 

(rare deer on  left) and the Condor (bird on 

right). Por La Razon O La Fuerza  is Chile's

motto "By Reason or by Force"

The small reddish deer known as a Pudu is just one of the endangered species at the Santiago Zoo.            

This picture shows one of the many amazing lake region scenes

Exports at the port  (Movement)

Chile grows many fruits and veggies which they export to different places.The Chileans grow apples,grapes,pears, and lemons. Farm products such as beans ,cattle  ,peas, hemp ,and sunflowers are also exported. Chilean grapes are used to make wine.The wine industries have a high demand on wine as well. Sheep ranching was also popular after the 19 century European immigrants came. Salmon is also exported from Chile's fish farms.Chilean salmon has the highest demand in salmon in the world after Norwegian salmon.Mining is also popular in Chile.Nitrates,copper ,iodine,lithium,iron,zinc, and molybdenum are mined in Chile.In fact the Chiquicamata pit mine in Chile is the largest open pit mine in  the world. Chile imports fuel, petroleum products,computers,and industrial machinery.

This is a Chilean salmon farm.

                                               World's largest open pit mine the Chuquicamata.                                                        

Chilean culture  (Region)

Mapuches means "men of the land". The Mapuches are natives who lived in south-central Chile and the strongest resisters to Spanish control. They live in reservations in central Chile in poverty.The Mapuche religion is based on a balance in good and evil. One god represents love and creation while the other god is ruler of destruction,death,sin, and illness.Women, according to the Mapuche beliefs , can talk to these gods.

The Chilean currency is in pesos which replaced the earlier escudos.The main ways to earn money in Chile are to be involved in : farming,fishing,and foresting. They grow fresh fruit and raise salmon. Chileans also mine in northern Chile. In the Atacama Desert they found many deposits of nitrates and minerals after the War of the Pacific.

                                                These are Chilean pesos,but paper bills also exist.                                                       

People meet Land  (Interaction)

When people first discovered Chile's land was good for agriculture, they cleared out a lot of the forest land.Recently they have been replanting trees which is improving the soil and the number of wood products.Chile has good climate and soil for growing grapes as well.The Chileans plant grapes and export wine made in wine industries.This wine is now world famous.The Chileans also sell a lot of salmon and shellfish causing the number of salmon and shellfish to decrease.Even so the profit is great.

                                                   Chilean wine is very popular.

What do you know about Chile?     ( copy the answers down)

Multiple choice

1. Where is Chile?
   
   a. North America
   b. South America
   c. Europe
   e. Asia
    f. Africa
   g. Australia

2. Which is the highest demand in exports from Chile?

   a. Wine
   b. Oranges
   c. Salmon
   d. Beaver pelts

3.What is a Pudu ?

   a. Reddish brown deer
   b. Penguin
   c. Type of bird 
   d. National flower
   e. Endangered reddish brown deer

4. Which tree is most like an Alercer tree ?

    a. Evergreen
    b. Pinecone
    c. Redwood

5. What are the two animals on the Chilean coat of arms?
  
    a. Humel and the Condor
    b. Condor and the Humel
    c. the pudu and the copihue

6. What can women do according to Mapuche beliefs?

     a. Cook and clean
     b. Fly to the moon
     c. Change shape 
     d. Talk to the gods

7. What is the Chilean currency?
   
     a. Pesos
     b. Escudos
     c. Dollar bills

8. Chileans fish for salmon.
     
     a. True
     b. False

9. What line crosses northern Chile?

    a. Tropic of Capricorn
    b. Equator
    c. Longitude
    d. Latitude

10. The driest desert in the world is in Chile.
    a. True
    b. False

Short answer ( only a few words needed)

11. Name three items mined in Chile?

12. Name three fruits exported in Chile?

13. What are the three main ways to earn money in Chile?

14.What is the name of the driest desert in the world?

 15.What does Chile's motto mean?

16. Name the three regions of Chile?

17.What is the Mapuche religion based on? 

18.What popular mountain range is located in Chile?

19. What is the largest open pit mine in the world? 

20. What is the Archipelago ?

BONUS :

Are the volcanoes in Chile part of the Ring of Fire?

YES or NO  

 -------- by : Maanasi